MediaNews will manage El Paso Times (the media consolidation continues)

[RagingInMiami]

Basically, Gannett, the largest newspaper group in the world, and MediaNews, one of the largest in the country, have signed a joint agreement to run several newspapers. I used to work for the Las-Cruces Sun-News when it was owned by MediaNews, and we used to compete against the El Paso Times, which was owned by Gannett.

http://www.elpasotimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2005512020342

[punpirate]

1. It was not that long ago...

... two or three years, I think, that Gannett also took control of the Las Cruces paper. Someone I knew there said that some editors and managers had been moved up from El Paso and was unsure how that would work out--plus there were a number of layoffs when Gannett took over.

From the sound of this, it seems as if neither paper is improving circulation, and Gannett and MediaNews are looking for ways to cut costs by sharing resources. It's probably going to mean more layoffs at both papers.

[Gloria]

2. From the Sun-News: "The Sun-News was owned by MediaNews

Group until the Texas-New Mexico Newspaper Partnership was formed between MediaNews Group and Gannett Co. in 2003."

The Sun-News has competition in Las Cruces in the form of The Bulletin, a free weekly paper that has grown rapidly.